The Wide Angle: Don’t ask cats for help when it comes to physics

The entirety of Monday was something of a long trial that while not unpleasant, was time consuming in a way that sucks the oxygen out of the room in terms of getting other things done that really ought to have been done.

If that seemed like an awful lot to take in as an introduction to a column, then don’t worry about it too much. It probably won’t make sense on a second or third read anyway, which is fine because it’s not like my columns have enough intellectual depth that require a follow-up read anyway.

Though Monday was busy, it was highlighted by a stop at Sweet Reads Books & Candy where I got the time to chat with one of my all time favorite people — Lisa Deyo — which in turn made way to talk to another one of my all time favorite people — John Wright — one of our features in the upcoming edition of Austin Living Magazine.

Don’t feel left out if you’re not mentioned. I have a lot of favorite people.

As our conversations generally tend to trend, Lisa and I ventured into a number of different areas and subject matters in kind of a track meet relay race of topics. They are always enjoyable and Lisa has always understood my somewhat tentative grip on maturity and even encourages it sometimes.

However, during the conversation she displayed one of those rare times where she underestimated just how feeble of a hold I have on said maturity when I made a quip about talking physics with my cats. Though she didn’t admit it, I’m not entirely sure she recognized just how truthful I was in that off-kilter comment.

The base of this little tale needs to be understood in terms of what I have and have not talked to my cats about and in this instance I can confidently say that I any conversations with my cats regarding physics are not terribly deep in terms of understanding the mathematical and matter-bending ideas behind the science.

This is mostly because I don’t understand a majority of what scientists talk about, which is being generous. All I know is that it sounds incredibly cool when Neil deGrasse Tyson talks about physics. Scientists like that make you want to learn more.

With that being said, I have taken to trying to understand more about science with the full realization that I don’t understand science, in particular physics. But that shouldn’t stop a person. We all should be encouraged to learn more about the world around us and the cosmos beyond.

Knowledge is valuable, knowledge is required if we’re to make things better and so when I hear of scientific concepts I try to teach myself by researching the topics. Does that mean I fully understand the second law of thermodynamics — entropy?

Of course not. I had to doublecheck just how to spell entropy.

I also struggle with the idea of string theory, quantum entanglement (though in a bit of pride I have a vague idea of how that one works, it’s just explaining the how that becomes tricky) or the theory of everything.

Still, I’ve discovered it’s fun to try and learn more about these things. In the process of trying to learn, I have a tendency of saying things out loud. It’s something I’ve done most of my life. There’s just something about hearing a voice, any voice really, say something out loud that helps me to understand something.

So I’ve talked to myself and had some really interesting conversations with, ahem, myself, until I started bouncing ideas off our cats.

It’s trickier than you might think.

I’ll float ideas of what I think I might be talking about and pause to gauge their level of interest, which if I’m to be frank, borders mostly on disinterest if not straight indifference along the lines of “Joy, the human is talking again.”

It’s a kind of mockery I don’t particularly appreciate, but don’t argue with because one doesn’t argue with your pets. After all, who pays the bills that allow them to sleep all day, eat snacks, sleep some more, wake us up in the middle of the night for no particular reason?

I’m just saying I refuse to be judged by our cats.

Heck, sometimes Buster will look at me in something like disdain for whatever reason. Like, somehow particles linked through quantum mechanics are beneath him. It’s rude in its own way.

I try to tell him such, but he just walks away into the kitchen — uncaring in regards to my valuable insights on particular areas of physics.

Ungrateful freeloader.

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